Ladyjack Volleyball Game Notes: vs TAMUCC, vs UTSA
11/2/2011 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Nov. 2, 2011
vs Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (13-16, 5-7 SLC) - Nov. 3, 6:30 p.m.
vs UTSA (18-8, 12-0 SLC) - Nov. 5, 1:00 p.m.
Game Notes
FOR STARTERS
A key stretch of games to close out the season awaits the Ladyjacks with two weeks remaining in the year before the Southland Conference Tournament, beginning this weekend with the final two home matches of the year, beginning Thursday vs Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.
Four matches remain on the slate with SFA currently in the tournament if it would start today. Aside from league-leading UTSA, and Texas State who each sit clearly ahead of the rest of the field, the next eight teams in the standings are separarted by just two games.
SFA split its matches with Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and UTSA the first time around, coming back from being down 2-0 on the Islanders’ home court to steal a 3-2 victory before falling in three sets to the Roadrunners two days later.
The Islanders find themselves in the same position as SFA with four matches left, maintaining a 5-7 record in the league and searchingor their first berth in the SLC Tournament. Meanwhile, UTSA still has yet to drop a set in Southland play, holding a perfect 12-0 record, but only leading second-place Texas State by a single game with one match with the Bobcats remaining to be played in San Antonio next week.
SFA will honor its two seniors before Saturday’s match with UTSA, middle blocker MC Bottles and outside hitter Melissa Miksch.
SFA vs THE ISLANDERS
vs TAMUCC, SFA leads 8-2
The last time: SFA 3, TAMUCC 2 • Sept. 29, 2011 • Corpus Christi
SFA vs THE ROADRUNNERS
vs UTA, SFA leads 30-10
The last time: UTSA 3, SFA 0 • Oct. 1, 2011 • San Antonio
LIVE STATS: Each match can be followed via Gametracker at www.sfajacks.com
FOLLOW SFA ATHLETICS: Fans are encouraged to follow along with SFA Volleyball and SFA Athletics as a whole via SFA’s social media sites on Facebook (SFA Athletics) and Twitter (@SFA_Athletics). Up-to-the minute match updates, as well as the latest news can be found via these outlets from all home matches and selected road matches.
CLOSING IN ON CONWAY: With just four matches remaining in the regular season, SFA is nearing clinching a spot in the 2011 Southland Conference Tournametn in Conway, Ark. The Ladyjacks hold a 5-7 record in league play entering Thursday’s match vs TAMUCC and would enter into the tournament as the No. 7 seed overall in the event if it were to end today. Both Nicholls and Northwestern State are on the outside looking in, one game back of SFA, but in the case of a tie, SFA would hold the edge via tiebreaker due to wins over the Demons and Colonels.
BURNS BLOCK PARTY: Since entering conference play, junior middle blocker Sabrian Burns has stepped up he game at the net and currently stands second in the entire Southland in league-only play with 1.42 blocks per set. She has at least three blocks in 10 of her last 12 matches overall, including at least four in each of her last three contests. Earlier in the season she put together her first career double-double that included a 10-block performance against Thursday’s opponent, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.
EARLY MOMENTUM: It’s always important for a team to start quickly, but moreso for this year’s youthful group of Ladyjacks, as is evident in its record after set one. When SFA is able to secure a first-set victory, it is 10-4 however, the Ladyjacks have only come back to take a match twice in 13 tries after falling in the opening set.
HANDLING HANLAN: Madison Hanlan has shot her way up the record lists at SFA in her junior year, and now needs just 10 more digs to take over sole possession of third place all-time on the SFA list. She also needs 92 digs to move into second place all by herself, which would leave her behind only former all-Amerian Stephanie Figgers at SFA.
PREMIUM BOTTLES: Senior MC Bottles is looking to join Kristy Rhodes (1998-2001) and Wendy Walling (1990-93) as just the third player in SFA history to earn all-SLC honors in all four years of play. After earning all-conference second team honors last year, she was an automatic selection to this year’s preseason all-SLC first team as SFA’s only representative on the team. The middle blocker from Rowlett, Texas, surpassed 1,000 for her career at ULM and needs 35 more to move into the SFA all-time top 10. She’s already made her way into the top 10 in blocks and needs seven more to become just the sixth Ladyjack with 400 career blocks. She still has a chance to join Brittany Burton, Aubrey Duncan and Traci Rohde as only the fourth Ladyjack to total 1,300 kills and 400 blocks for a career.
TRIO OF DOUBLES: In it’s win over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, SFA had three players - Katzy Randall, Paige Holland and Sabrina Burns - finish the match with a double-double. Burns’ double-double was the first of her career and included 10 blocks, marking the first time an SFA player picked up a double-double with 10 blocks in a match since MC Bottles did so versus Portland last season. Overall, the match turned out to be the first timeSFA had three-players with double-doubles in the same match since Whitney Schott, Lauren Railey and Shelly Swendig had double-doubles in a 3-1 loss to Montana on Sept. 5, 2008 - a span of of 120 matches.
TURNING THE PAIGE: Freshman setter Paige Holland has quickly taken to the starting setter role for the Ladyjacks through two weeks of collegiate volleyball, and will enter this weekend seventh in the Southland Conference with 9.66 assists per set. It’s not as though SFA hasn’t had success with freshman setters before, but Holland went over the 1,000-assist mark for the year on Saturday vs UT-Arlington and still has an outside chance to put together a freshman season that would land her in the SFA single-season top 10.
-SFA-
